Preoperative biliary drainage for malignant biliary obstruction: to drain or not to drain? And if drain, in what way?

Abstract

On the basis of the conducted literary search, a number of conclusions can be drawn. When performing preoperative biliary drainage (PBD), it is necessary to have a clear understanding: why is this procedure performed (severe liver failure, cholangitis, long preoperative preparation is required due to comorbid status, neoadjuvant chemotherapy is necessary, etc.)? Routine use of PBD is impractical. In the presence of indications for PBB in perihilar cholangiocarcinoma, percutaneous decompression is preferable, in periampullary tumors, endoscopic. Moreover, both methods can be alternative (for example, in case of technical failure of the first priority). There is also no convincing evidence of the superiority of metal stents over plastic ones for PBD (except in cases of long-term preoperative preparation or neoadjuvate treatment) for periampular tumors. To date, a decrease in overall survival and a higher incidence of implantation metastases have not been proven when using the antegrade PBD method. Large multicenter studies are required with differentiation of patients according to the nosological principle in order to more accurately understand the place of each method, as well as to determine clear indications for PBD and those clinical situations when its implementation is impractical.